At the beginning of August, my girlfriend and I flew to my hometown of Buffalo, NY to attend a family picnic/delayed wedding reception for my sister who had a planned elope wedding in Vegas (everyone knew they were getting married while they were there). Anyway, we had a fairly poor experience flying AirTran on our return to Houston and I wrote a pretty nasty email to them and after starting this blog a few weeks later, some friends told me to add it because while it addresses serious issues, it is also hysterical! Enjoy!
To Whom It May Concern:
On Sunday, August 7, 2005, my girlfriend and I were to take Flight 553, from Buffalo, NY, which was scheduled to leave at 2005 and arrive in Atlanta, GA at 2215. We were then scheduled to connect to Flight 299, scheduled to depart ATL at 2250 and arrive in Houston, TX at 2350 (CDT). Due to weather in Atlanta, our flight from Buffalo was delayed until approximately 1015 (we boarded at 945). While waiting, announcements were made concerning connecting flights at least three different times, each time, updating the connections to the best of their knowledge. The last announcement before we boarded in Buffalo listed our connecting flight time as 1215. We then assumed that should be enough time to change flights.
When we finally arrived in ATL, at 1214 (that is the exact time the CSR told us we arrived at the gate), deplaned, got into the terminal, asked a CSR which gate we were at and proceeded to that gate, our connection had departed. This is now approximately 1222. Assuming all the information that we were given before departing Buffalo was correct, we presumed that our flight was being held to allow us to make our connection. I understand there are schedules to keep, however, if this is the last flight of the evening for this plane and it’s already leaving 1 ½ hours late, what is another 15 minutes? If I were on that plane and they held it for this reason, I would understand and I would hope anyone else would too, knowing they could be in that situation at some time also. However, we were told that the connection information we were given was not correct and our connecting flight to Houston closed at 1145 and if I heard correctly, departed the gate 1206, 8 minutes before we arrived at the gate and 16 minutes before we could’ve made it to that plane. Again, holding planes for passengers that you know are on another flight and will arrive shortly for 15 more minutes, when it is already late for its original takeoff is not an unreasonable request.
In any event, we proceeded to the customer service counter, a line that was about 15 people deep when we entered it, to get what we assumed would be a hotel voucher and assistance with booking us on the first flight out in the morning. While standing in line, we called your 800 number, rebooked our flights and continued to stay in line for the hotel voucher. At 0120, just short of an hour of standing in line, we finally made it to the counter, were given our new boarding passes, a vendor voucher for food or whatever and the number to call for a reservation at a hotel at the lowest rate available, not at your expense however, because this was a weather related delay, according to the CSR. Again, had they held the plane, there would not have been any delay and we would not have been put in that situation! Also, they could’ve announced that we were not going to receive a hotel voucher at your expense and the line would’ve moved significantly faster and we would’ve been able to catch the train to the main terminal, because to add insult to injury, the trains don’t run after 0100 (which is not your fault) and we would’ve had to walk to the main terminal, catch the shuttle and get to the hotel, probably not until 0215. Because our new flight (#287) was at 0805 (which was also late, as I will explain below), we would’ve gathered about 4.5 hours of sleep, at our expense!
After realizing that leaving the airport, going to a hotel, that we would be spending less that 20% of a day in, but paying the full price for and wasting a lot of time and energy, it would be worthwhile to find a comfortable bench in the terminal and try to catch some sleep. At approximately 0145, we then proceeded back to your customer service counter and simply asked if we could possibly get a couple of blankets because the terminal was very cold (unfortunately, this was not something we can blame on you!). The lady at this counter was very nice and asked another staff member to check a plane for some blankets and bring them to us. We never saw him again. We pulled a couple of benches together and attempted to sleep, however, between airport announcements, the cleaning crew and people milling around, I managed a meager .5 hour of sleep between 0230 and 0630, while my girlfriend managed a little less than 2 hours of sleep during the same period. We then arose to get ourselves together and head for some breakfast, on you, and go to our gate for our flight home. We managed to eat .5 of our meals, which were below standards for most humans, but since we didn’t have to pay for it, we figured you wouldn’t mind us wasting your money like you’ve wasted our time.
We arrived at our gate at approximately 0715 and waited anxiously to board and go home. At 0745, I wondered aloud why we had yet to board, or even hear an announcement as to why. Within a few minutes, an announcement was made that overnight, the plane had undergone routine maintenance, but had yet to be cleaned and that was the reason for the delay. Had I known this would be an issue, I would’ve offered to clean the plane, for my normal OT wage at my job, since I had nothing better to do all night long! Maybe I could’ve grabbed a blanket to keep myself and my girlfriend warm while I was on there! All the same, we finally boarded at approximately 0815 and departed the gate around 0830. While we boarded and again during mid-flight, we asked one of the flight attendants for a couple of blankets, because we had yet to warm up from our night in the arctic terminal, but received none.
Also, on a side note, on our flights to Buffalo on Friday, August 5, 2005, when the drink cart came around, I was given my soda in a cup and the remainder of the can. However, on both return flights, I received only my cup, which gave me about 2 sips and I was done. I realize I could’ve asked for more, but try to get everyone on the same page; continuity and standardization is what makes fast-food so successful. I can go to McDonald’s in Seattle, WA and Boone, NC and know that my food will be prepared the same in both places. Keep that idea in mind.
Back to my real complaint, due to this outrageous inconvenience, I had to call-off of my hourly-paying job, which will leave me short in my paycheck in a few weeks. Meanwhile, my girlfriend is a very busy attorney, who had to call and reschedule all her morning appointments. I would hope that you’re aware that in her line of work, time is money and you’ve cost her 4-6 hours of billable time because someone didn’t want to hold a plane for 15 minutes.
Does this sound like an enjoyable experience with your airline? After having a very pleasant weekend with my family, some of whom I have not seen in over a year, I had to deal with this situation, which also lead to a very grumpy girlfriend and I had to deal with that as well! Fortunately, I had a lot of time to write an email to you while I was sitting in the terminal waiting for my morning flight! All of these events and thoughts are fresh in my mind and will remain so until a resolution has come about. Yes, that’s right; I want something for all of this trouble. It had better be worth my time and aggravation or I will make sure that anyone I come in contact with does not use your airline in the future, which would be unfortunate because you fly to so many of the cities where I personally would visit and where many of my friends often fly from Houston. I would also visit various websites that rate airlines and post comments that portray your lack of complimentary services in these types of situations and stupidity in flight management very blatantly, as I believe I have in this letter.
I have worked in the customer service industry for 15 years and I would never treat one of my customers as I feel I have been treated by your airline. Customer service is your lifeblood and if you continue with this type, you’ll be bleeding to death. We paid for tickets on a flight that, for us, never occurred and cost myself even more money, by having to miss work. Potentially, this could’ve cost even more money had we gone to the hotel. How do two $350 plane tickets turn into $1000, re-read this email and you’ll understand how.
I’ll be eagerly waiting for your response. I can be reached at this email address, my work email address (insert address here), my home phone (insert # here), my cell phone (insert # here), or my work phone (insert # here) M-F (after Monday, August 08, 2005, since I needed to take the day off!). I fully expect I’ll be hearing from you very shortly.
Sincerely,
Goal10der Conf. #O N
S Conf. #A F
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